Coupling



July 26,1927. 1,636,706 7 Y L. REISFELD V COUPLING Filed April l924 2Sheets-Sheet 2 lazuli Eedj/la. I

VViZ/ws-S: INVENTOR.

W- I BY ATTORNEYS.

Patented July 26, 1927.

cans s.Tartsws. E 'FELD. foF carcass. lm tols COUPLING.

Application filednpril 9,

This invention relates to improvements in couplings and its purpose istoprovide a yielding coupli ng adapted to permit a. limited relativemovement-between the connect;- ed shafts or other members when theinitial movement of one of tllQSOlllQIIlbGI'S occurs. lit is difficultto secure an exact alignment of two shafts which are connected togetherand one object of the-present invention is to I provide a COH PllITLgWlIlCl-I wil-l automatically compensate for any slight lack of alignment)f the shafts which are connected by the coupling. A furtheradvantage-of. the invention is that they-ie'lding connection provided bythe coupling serves to store up energy from the driving shaft which isuti-, iized in overcoming the inertia of the driven shaft and inabsorbing theshocks incident. to. the starting of the mechanism operatedby the driven shaft. This feature is of advantage particularly where thedrivenshaft is connected to drive a considerable loadand a motor isemployed for operating the drivshaft. In that case the present invemtion permits'the use of a motor having a relatively small startingtorque since the energy of the motor is stored up in the resilientmembers of the coupling until the stored energy is suflicient toovercome the inertia of the driven shaft and its load. The variousobjects and advantages of the invention will appear more fullyhereinafter.

Two, forms of-the invention aredeseribed in the following specificationtaken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which Figure lshows a longitudinal'section through the improved coupling; Fig. 2 showsa seetionalview on the line2-2 o f Fig. 1 Fig. 3 shows a sectional viewon the line 83 of Fig. 1; Fig. l is a sectional view talge n on thelineL-45 0f- Fig. 1; Fig. 5 shows an end elevation ofa modifiedforni of theinvenion; Fig. 6 shows a transverse sectional View on the line 6 -6OffFig.- 5; Fig. 7 is a sectional View taken onthejline f ie. flam ngan. nd l a n, a the side of the apparatus opposite that illus: read F g-5; a d Fist is a ta 2- tional View ak 09. a' +8' t:F 5. h ing he m ns ofadiustia t e p tion of; the springs.

In h ra i s. he. dri ng. l aft t is. illustrated as, the'shaft of anelectric motor.

11 and this shaft is connected tq the.

s ft 2 y means t. helnnirovaleearheg.

T r ae em-p ises. a havens 1924. Serial No. 705,185.

ving a hub..15 which is keyed on the shaft and which supports the radialdisks or end walls late and 14:". A. driving pinion 16 is. keyed on. theshaft 10 and this pinion meshes with three planetary gears 17- each ofwhich lljlQllP-id on a small shaft 18;. The shafts 1 are journaled inbearings 19 and: 20 which are formed ia he nd M S 14* and 14?,respectively, an 1 each shaft 1 8 has keyed thereon between the bearings19 and 20 a drum Or sle ye 21 which is adapted to wind. up a coil,spring 22 when tllG. connected shaft 18 is rotated in the properdirection. Each ofthe coil springs 22 is mounted on one ofthe, drums 21and one end of the spring is; engaged. by, a radial lug or arm 23':which projects outwardly fromlthe drum so. that when the ,Cl'rum isretated the endof the spring is carried; around with it. The other end;of each spring is ieldfi'n a relatively stationary, position withrespect to the drum by the engagement of the extremity 22 thereof withan aperture in a boss 24 formed in; the end wall 149. These parts ofthe. eouplingare enclosed by acylinder 25 which forms the outer wall of:the casing 14. This cylinder projects beyond the end wall 14 toform ahousing 101 the planetary gearing andit is secured to the end walls bymeans of screws 26.

the construction of the coupling it is not necessary that the teeth of.the pinion 16 and ofthe. gears 17 be designed, to have a perfect rollingcontact on. each other when the relative motion thereof: takes place;The spaces between the teeth of the gears are preferably ofsuflioient'depth to compensate for any lack ofexact alignment of theshafts 10 and 12 Which are connected together by the coupling, thusovercoming. thev difiiculty which is usually encountered'whenaligningshafts are connected by rigid couplings. Assumingthat the shaft1 2 and its load arev stationary and that the mot-or ll' has just beenstarted to operate the shaft 10, the initial ro-, tat-ion of the pinion16 rotates the gears 17 and thereby operatesthe. shafts 18 to effect thewinding up of thespr-ings 22. As the energy is .tored' up in thesesprings, the torque on the casing 14 which is transmitted theretothrough the ends 22 of the springs finallyreachesa magnitude sufficientto'ov ereo ne the inertia of the shaft-12 and its load thesepartsarethen set in motion. Whenthe sh ft 1 2 audits load are rotating and woundup, the

spr ngs have, been inion 16 remains locked with and in a relavelystationary position with respect to the gears 17 which then serve merelyto trans mit the motion of the pinion to the casing 14 and the shaft 12.The shafts and 12 then rotate in unison during the continued operationof the motor 11. When the motor 11 is stopped, the shaft 12 and its loadwill come to rest and the energy stored up in the springs 22 may thenresult in a reverse rotation of the shaft 10. A clutch may be employedto prevent reverse rotation of the armature shaft of the motor or thisreverse rotation may be utilized to generate electric power and returnit to the supply circuit. It will be apparent that this form of couplingserves not only to compensate for lack of ali nment of the connectedshafts but that it also overcomes the necessity of using a driving motorhavii'ig a large starting torque.

In the form of the invention illustrated in Figs 1 to 4 inclusive it maybe desirable to provide means for establishing a rigid connectionbetween the shafts 18 and the casing 14 after the springs 22 have beenwound up to a predetermined degree, thereby relieving the tress upon thesprings during the normal operation of the apparatus. For this purpose,the hubs 19 on the casing 14 may be provided with integral lugs 28,which are adapted to be engaged by longitudinally eX- tending lugs 29formed on the drums 21, so that after the springs 22 have been wound upsufficiently to overcome the inertia of the shaft 12 and its load, thelugs 29 will engage the lugs 28 and transmit the driving force throughthese lugs to the casing during continued operation of the mechanism. Ifdesired, the lugs 28 may be adjustable in posi tion on the hubs 19.

A modified form of the invention is illustrated in Figs. 5 to 8inclusive. In this form the driving shaft 30, which may be the armatureof the shaft of a motor, is adapted to operate the driven shaft 32through an intermediate coupling The driving shaft has keyed thereon adriving member 34 which may be considered. a special form of drivinggea'r having three equally spaced recesses 35 formed in the outerperiphery p ti thereof toreceive the extremities of three driven members36 which are in the form of levers kyed on the auxiliary shafts 37. Theshafts 37 are journaled in hubs 38 formed. in the central web 39 of thecasing 39 which constructed substantially in the form of a fly wheel orpulley having an annular flange 39 of cylindrical form which extendslaterally in both directions from the web 39 to form a housing for themechanism the coupling. The hub 39 of the casing 39 is keyed on thedriven shaft 32 and the driving force which is imparted to the shafts 37through the members 34and 36 is adapted to operate through intermediateresilient mechanism to cause the rotation of the casing 39 and the shaft32. The extremities 36 of the driven members 36 which engage therecesses 35 in the driving u'len'iber 34 are substantially spherical inform and the walls of the recesses 35 are arranged to have a similarcontour so that the co-acting surfaces will have a free rolling contactwhen the member 34 is rotated. To compensate for lack of alignment ofthe shafts 30 and 32. the recesses 35 are increased in depthsufficiently to permit some radia-l adjustment. of the sphericalextremities 36 with respect to the driving shaft 30.

The angular movement of the driving member 34 on the shaft 30 causesacorresponding angular movement of the driven members 36 and the shafts37. These shafts 37 extend through the web 39 of the easing' and theirprojecting extremities have keyed thereon the operating levers 40 whichare adapted to engage the heads 41 of a series of plungers 41 havingcoil springs 42 mounted thereon. The ends of the plungers 41 adjacentthe heads 41 are slidably mounted in bosses 43 which'are formed on theweb 39 the set screws 44 mounted in the bosses being adapted to engagegrooves .45 in the plungers to prevent rotation thereof. The

other ends of the plungers 41 are slidably mounted in sleeves 46 whichthreadedly engage other bosses 47, also formed on the web 39 The sleeves46 are provided with flanges or heads 46 to be engaged by a wrench orthe fingers of the operator for adjusting the positions of the sleevesin the bosses 47, and the coil springs 42, previously referred to, aremounted between the sleeves 4G and the collars 48 which are fixed on theplungers by means of pins 49. The springs 42 thus tend normally to forcethe extremities of the operating levers 40 outwardly away from the axisof the shaft 32. This movement may be limited by the engagen'ient of thelevers 40 wit-h the annular flange 39 of the casing, but it ispreferably limited by the provision of projecting arms 50 on the hubs ofthe levers 40, these arms being adapted to engage the lugs 51 whichproject outwardly from the web 39*.

In this second embodiment of the invention, the springs 42 are adaptedto store up energy during the movement of the operating levers 40 causedby thev partial rotation of the shafts 37 and when this stored energy issuflicient to overcome the inertia of the shaft 32 and its load, thecasing 39 begins to rotate and thereby drives the shaft upon which it ismounted. The initial compres ,sion of the springs 42 may be so adjustedthat, after suflicient energy has been stored in the springs 42 to startthe rotation of the casing 39 and the shaft 32, the heads 41 of theplungers will engage the fixed bosses 43, thus driving the casing 39without transmitting the driving force throughthespri'n s.

The necessary adjustment of the springs 42 the projecting threaded endsof the plunge ers. After the operating members'f ltl liav'e been placedon the shaft 31', the nuts 52fia're unscrewed to permit theheads ll ofthe plungers to engagethe endsof the lever-sand also to leave sufficientplay for the operat on of the plui'igers during the actuation of the vdriven members liavin-g cooperating means driving mechanism. Thisconstruction in addition to absorbing shocks and compensating for lackof alignment, has the advantage'that it is very compact in form-and itis particularly adapted for use where the inertia of the driven shaftmay 'be overcome with a comparatively limited relative angu lar movementof tl'i'edriving shaft. with respect to the'dr'iven shaft when theapparatus is first started in operation. 7

Although two forms of the invention have been shown and desc'ribe'dbyway of'illustratio'n, it will be understood that it may be constructedin various (ither embodiments without departing from the scope "of theappended claims.

I claim:

1. The combination in a coupling for connecting alignii'ig shafts, ofmechanism carried entirely by said shafts and controlled entirely by therotation of said shafts for transmitting motion from one shaft to theother, said mechanism comprising intermeshing relatively movable gearmembers and the connected parts adapted to compensate for inaccuraciesin the alignment of said shafts and to permit relative angular movementof said shafts for storing energy when one of said shafts is started inoperation.

2. In combination, a pair of shafts located in substantial alignment, amember driven bv one of said shafts and carried entirely by the other ofsaid shafts, and energy storing mechanism having a continuous andpermanent driving connection with said memher and with said other shaftfor transmit ting motion between said shafts.

3. The combination in a shaft coupling of a pair of shafts insubstantial alignment, a pinion driven by one of said shafts, and gearmechanism actuated by said pinion for transn'iitting; motion to theother of said shafts. said gear mechanism being adapted to permitrelative angular rotative movement of said shafts when said pinion isstarted in operation and to hold said shafts in aligning positionsduring the normal operation thereof.

4. The combination in a shaft coupling of ate'd by andjhaving continuousdriving enga'gement with saiddriving member, and means-connecting saiddnven members with the other of saidshafts for storing up "energy fromsaid 'driven members and overc'oming the inerti'aof" said other shaft.

5*. In 'comb'inationfa pair of shafts in substantial alignment, adriving member actuat ed by one of said shafts, a plurality ofrotat'able driven members actuated by said driving "member and'eachcapable of a 'plu rality 'of rotations with respectto'the other of saidshaft-s, said driving member and said to'c'omp'en'sat'e for lack ofexact alignment of said shafts, and means actuated by the rotation'ofsaid driven members for transmitting motion from said driven member's tothe other of said shafts.

'6; In combination, a pair of 'shafts in substantial alignment, adrivinganembe-r actuated by one of said shafts, a' plurality of drivenmembers distributed around and ratand actuated thereby, a plurality ofresilient 'membe'rseach adapted to yieldto the motion of a connected oneof said driven members,

and means for transmitting the energy of said resilient members to theother-fofsaid shafts to effect rotation thereof. I

7. Incomoin'a tion, a pai-rof shafts in substan'ti'al alignment, drivingmember actuated by one of said shafts, a plurality of driven membersdistributed around said driving member and actuated thereby for rotationon pivots having fixed positions with respect to the other of saidshafts, a plurality of resilient members carried by said other shafteach adapted to yield to the motion of a connected one of said drivenmembers, means for transmitting the energy of said resilient members tothe other of said shafts to effect rotation thereof, and means forlimiting the extent to which said resilient members may yield.

8. In combination, a pair of shafts in substantial alignment, a drivingmember actuated by one of said shafts, a plurality of driven membersactuated by said driving member, a casing secured to the other of saidshafts, and a plurality of resilient memb ers supported by said casingindependently of said. driven members and each adapted to yield to therelative movement of a connected one of said driven members with respectto said casing.

79. The combination in a shaft coupling of a pair of shafts insubstantial alignment, planetary gear mechanismactuated by one of saidshafts, and energy storing means actuated by said gear mechanism forovercoming the inertia of the other of said shafts upon the initialoperation of said gear mechanism.

'10. The combination in ashaft coupling of a pair of shafts insubstantial alignment, planetary gear mechanism actuated byvone of saidshafts, and energy storing means ac tuated by said gear mechanism forovercoming the inertia of the other of said shafts upon the initialoperation of said gear mechanism, said gear mechanism being adapted tocompensate for inaccuracy in the alignment of said shafts.

11. In combination, a pair of shafts located in substantial alignment, arotatable driving member fixed on one of said shafts, a plurality ofrotatable driven members meshing with said driving member and mounted onpivots having relatively fixed positions with respect to said othershaft, and a series of coiled springs carried by said other shaft andeach connected with an individual one of said driven members to be woundup thereby when said driven members are actuated by said rotatabledriving member.

12. The combination in a shaft coupling of a pair of shafts located insubstantial alignment, a pinion fixed on one of said shafts, planetarygears actuated by said pinion, springs adaptedto be wound up by therotation of said gears, and means connecting said springs with the otherof said shafts for effecting the rotation thereof.

13. In combination, a pair of shafts l0- cat-ed in substantialalignment, a pinion fixed on one of said shafts, a casing fixedon theweaves other of said shafts, a series of gears rotatively carried bysaid casing to mesh with said pinion, a series of drums each actuated bya selected one of said gears, and a coiled spring mounted on each ofsaid drums, each of said coiled springs being connected at one end tothe adjacent drum and at the other end to said casing.

14. In combination, a pair of shafts located in substantial alignment, apinion fixed on one of said shafts, a casing fixed on the other ofsaidshafts, a series of gears rotatively carried by said casing to mesh withsaid pinion, a series of drums each actuated by aselected one of saidgears, a coiled spring mounted on each of said drums, each of saidcoiled springs being connected at one end to the adjacent drum and atthe other end to said casing and means for limiting the movement of eachof said drums with respect to said casing.

15. In combination, a pair of shafts in substantial alignment, arotatable driving member fixed on one of said shafts, a casing fixed onthe other of said shafts, a plurality of auxiliary shafts journaled insaid casing, a plurality of driven members each fixed on one of saidauxiliary shafts and arranged to mesh with said rotatable drivingmember, and resilient means actuated by the rotation of said auxiliaryshafts for effecting the movement of said shaft onwhich said. casing isfixed.

LOUIS REISFELD.

